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Shakespeare on Stage
The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, The Comedy of Errors. To Jul. 29, 2012.
Atlanta Shakespeare Company, As You Like It. To Jun. 24, 2012.
American Shakespeare Center, The Lion in Winter. To Nov. 24, 2012.
American Shakespeare Center, The Merchant of Venice. To Nov. 23, 2012.
American Shakespeare Center, The Winter's Tale. To Jun. 16, 2012.
More Performances…
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Art in England

Decorative tree from a bed hanging. Artist unknown. Victoria and Albert Museum.

In literature and music, England saw an extraordinary flowering of genius during the Renaissance. Oddly enough, that flowering did not extend to the visual arts. From Holbein* under Henry VIII to Reubens and Van Dyck under Charles I, the great paintings produced in England were created by imported artists.

Domestic art remained vigorous and inventive as is shown here by an embroidery designed to decorate a four-poster bed. The design is taken from natural subjects, and is full of life and colour. A tablecloth (or "table carpet") from the period has the same interest in subjects drawn from everyday life.

More images are on the next page.

Footnotes

  1. Hans Holbein

    Hans Holbein, the younger (c.1497-1543) became Court painter to Henry VIII, whose portrait he painted. He also sketched the family of Sir Thomas More. He died of the plague in London.